Meditation in Jail Making Big Difference

Think you need a special chair or a comfy setting to meditate? Think again. Inmates in LA County Men's Central jail are meditating in their cells with the help of a weekly course given by a Buddhist chaplain -- and it's making a big-time difference.

According to this great story in the LA Times, meditation has made a tremendous difference in the lives of these men -- many of whom are locked up for violent crimes. Inmates who've participated talk of greater self-control, the ability to deal with conflict better, and "escape the jail's constant clamor."

Gary Janka, the Buddhist chaplain who runs the program, doesn't see the irony either and says, "What a perfect place... That's what we have going for us here, everyone is suffering."